I thought it would be interesting to look back at one of the worst storms on a Halloween Day.  The National Weather Service labeled this system “The Perfect Storm” as an Extratropical system caused nasty conditions for many in the Northeast.  One of the causes of this storm was very cool air to the West interacting with warm waters from the Summer season.  Water takes longer to cool off than an atmosphere that only resides over land.  This difference triggered a massive storm that unfortunately caused 12 deaths.  There were gusts of winds near 80 along the Massachusetts coastline.  These winds created waves as high as 30 feet.  There was eventually a movie made after this storm, which you probably remember.  The movie’s name was you guessed it, “The Perfect Storm.”  I wish you a very Happy Halloween Night.

Happy Halloween

Nothing but treats from Mother Nature today and tonight.  It should be a great evening for trick-or-treaters all over the Mid-South.  Sunset this evening with be at 6:06 PM.  We should have a partly cloudy sky with temperatures in the upper sixties at 6 PM.  Temperatures should fall no lower than 62 degrees by 8 PM. 

Our day ahead is just as nice as we expect a mostly sunny sky with highs in the lower seventies this afternoon.  Overnight lows will fall into the upper forties tonight.  The weekend will remain dry and be even warmer as highs reach into the mid seventies.  That trend will continue into the beginning of next week.  Our next chance for rain will move in late Wednesday and Thursday.  Expect scattered rain and thunderstorms with highs falling into the sixties Thursday. 

Don’t forget to fall back this weekend as we return to Central Standard Time.  So, set your clocks back one hour Saturday night before you go to bed.  That’s also a good time to change the batteries in your smoke detectors and weather radios. 

In an effort to get the Action News 5 Forecast to you in as many ways as possible, I’ve now started posting the forecast on Twitter.com.  It’s a fun web based service that combines blogging, instant messaging, social networking, and chatting.  I’ll post the forecast for the day and a link to the 7 Day Forecast every morning around 4:30 or 5 and any updates through the morning if neccessary.  The Action News 5 web team also post links to breaking news and any other stories of interest each day.  If you twitter then you know all about it.  If you don’t and are looking for other ways to get or stay connected then check it out.   The service is free and easy to sign up and you can pick and choose the people and profiles to follow.  Happy Tweeting. 

Here are the 24 hour highs and the morning lows from the National Weather Service Office in Memphis this morning:

MAX/MIN TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION TABLE FOR THE MIDSOUTH
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
715 AM CDT WED OCT 29 2008

MEMPHIS                52     35     0.00
NWS MEMPHIS        53     31     0.00
JACKSON               52     28     0.00
DYERSBURG           50     30     0.00
BOLIVAR               48     26     0.00
LEXINGTON          50     26     0.00
HUNTINGDON      48     27     0.00
UNION CITY          49     27     0.00
PARIS                    48     27     0.00
JONESBORO          52     30     0.00
BLYTHEVILLE        53     32     0.00
WALNUT RIDGE    52     32     0.00
WEST MEMPHIS     52     31     0.00
TUPELO                53     31     0.00
CORINTH             54     30     0.00

As a result of the cold temperatures, clear sky, and calm wind a widespread frost was found over much of the Action News 5 coverage area this morning.  It the cold weather is not your thing then you’ll like the forecast.  A southerly flow will return to the Mid-South today and combine with plenty of sunshine to warm afternoon temperatures into the low to mid sixties.  The southerly flow will also help to keep overnight lows well above freezing only falling into the upper thirties to mid forties.  The warmer temperatures and dry weather will hold on for the end of the week and weekend.  Expect plenty of sunshine with highs in the upper sixties to lower seventies and overnight lows in the mid forties to near fifty. 

Preface : This a weather map, not a political map!

The pink and red colors on this map indicate dry air.  The blues indicate a moisture laden enviornment.  This map is the forecast for Thursday morning.  Notice how many of the states on the map contain the pink and red colors.  When the atmosphere is very dry in the Low-levels it is hard, but not impossible, to have active weather.  There will likely be less than 5  Continental states, if that, that see rain this Thursday.  It is not often that the weather is this tranquil for so many, but October probably has more days of these patterns than any other month.

Here are the morning lows from around the Mid-South this morning.

MAX/MIN TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION TABLE FOR THE MIDSOUTH
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
719 AM CDT TUE OCT 28 2008

                         24HR   12HR    24HR
STATION           HIGH   LOW     PCPN

MEMPHIS             53     35     0.00
NWS MEMPHIS     53     32     0.00
JACKSON             52     32     0.00
DYERSBURG         52     34     0.00
BOLIVAR              49     27     0.00
SAVANNAH         50     30     0.00
LEXINGTON         51     32     0.00
HUNTINGDON     48     31     0.00
UNION CITY        49     32     0.00
PARIS                   47     29     0.00
JONESBORO         53     33     0.00
BLYTHEVILLE       54     30     0.00
WALNUT RIDGE   52     30     0.00
WEST MEMPHIS    52     32     0.00
TUPELO               54     33     0.00
CORINTH            54     32     0.00

Our loyal viewer in Oxford, Randy Condry, e-mailed me this morning and reported widespread frost in Layafette County.  Northwest winds at 5 to 10 mph overnight kept frost from covering the entire Action News 5 coverage area.  That will not be the case tonight as temperatures will dip into the upper twenties and lower thirties with a light to calm wind.  This should provide the perfect conditions for a good coat of frost over most of the Mid-South by sunrise Wednesday morning.  The National Weather Serice is Memphis is issuing a FREEZE WARNING from 1 AM until 9 AM Wednesday for the entire area.

Very strong High pressure at the surface to our West is directly influencing Mid-South weather.  This High has ushered in very cold air for this time of year anyway from the Canadian Plains.  High pressure centers that originate in these locations can bring a large bubble of Arctic air that pummels down into our region.  This strong High will equate to very low temperatures tonight.  Some folks will fall to the freezing mark but I believe Memphis International Airport will remain above freezing.  The best chance for freezing numbers will be closer to the Tennessee River Valley, say around Jackson, Trenton, and Bolivar in our Eastern counties.  Dave Brown will have the specific temperature updates tonight on Action News Five and any new information on Freeze Watches and/or Warnings.

Our first taste of really cold air is beginning to work into the Action News Five Coverage Area.  The airmass behind our latest cold front originated in the Arctic and its modified version is sliding into the region.  Notice all the blue and pink colors on the map.  That translates into cold numbers for a good bit of the country.  This is a forecast for Monday morning’s surface temperatures.  Parts of the area are under a Freeze Watch effective tomorrow night.  It includes all of West Tennessee, the Missouri Bootheel, and parts of Eastern Arkansas.  We may even use our “wind chill” map for the first time of our Fall season tomorrow.  You’ll want to check in with Ron Childers on Action News Five tomorrow morning as he will have all the latest details as each computer model comes into our Weather Center.

As the “Race for the Cure” run began this morning in Germantown, runners were greeted with temperatures in the upper 30s to around 40 but with dry skies.  Can you believe there have been over one million runners take place in this event around the country since 2005?  WOW!  The first race was actually run in Dallas back in 1983 with about 800 runners.  This is truly a great event for a great cause.

The rest of our day will be nice and finally warm into the middle 60s, still a bit chilly even for this time of year.  Look for lows in the upper 40s tonight.  I am tracking possibly our strongest cold front of this season thus far currently in Canada.  It will be over 24 hours before the boundary arrives into the Mid-South.  You’ll definitely want to stay tuned with us as we update the forecast.  Also, check out our Weather Special tonight that runs from 7-8 PM on WMC-TV 5.  I think you will really enjoy it as it brings a “behind the scenes” look at how we track storms and what goes on in our Weather Center every day.  We’ll also take a look back at some of the most significant weather events in our City’s history.  You don’t want to miss it!

Thursday morning showers materialized quickly as the long-anticipated cold front is moving through the region.  We’ve been getting steady rainfall for the last few hours here in midtown.  Most areas have probably already peaked temperature-wise, so bundle up for a cool, rainy day with afternoon readings just near 60 degrees.

Today from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. the ACTION NEWS 5 STORM TRACKING TEAM will be at the Kroger at 540 S. Mendenhall in Memphis as part of the Weather Radio Programming Tour.  Weather radios make great gifts (even for yourself), and we hope you’ll stop by to say hi!

We’re giving you a front-row seat in our Storm Tracking Center this Saturday night!  “HOW WE TRACK STORMS” airs Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. & is a look at what it takes to bring you weather coverage, featuring interviews, a behind-the-scenes look at the studio, and in-depth looks at the tools we use to bring you the forecast on a daily basis.  Don’t forget to set your video recorders!

Back to the forecast, the University of Memphis is celebrating Homecoming Weekend.  Friday’s parade should come off just fine, as rainfall should be well to the east and temps will be in the lower 60s.  Saturday will feature a high in the mid 60s with a kickoff temperature near 60 degrees under partly cloudy skies.

(Photo Courtesy Univ. of Memphis on flickr.com)